Rookie happy to get on field as RB or on special teams

7:59 PM,
Jul. 12, 2013

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For four years, Johnathan Franklin lined up each day at practice with the rest of his UCLA teammates and ran the gamut on special teams.

He'd sprint down the field at gunner, continuously rep as a personal protector and even split time fielding balls on kickoff and punt returns.

That was Franklin's routine. But once Saturday rolled around, the 5-foot-10, 205-pound running back was back on offense exclusively. The week of special-teams work became nothing more than an afterthought as his responsibilities rarely deviated from the backfield on game day. ...